Titanium has lengthy been revered within the biking world for its distinctive trip high quality —clean but full of life, and virtually magical in its potential to mix consolation with efficiency. It’s a cloth synonymous with status. Nevertheless, this legendary fame usually comes with a price ticket to match.
State Bicycles is the most recent in a slew of manufacturers attempting to vary that perspective by making titanium bikes accessible to the plenty with the discharge of its Titanium All-Highway. At a beginning worth level of $2,499.99 for a whole bike and $1,299.99 for the frameset, the Ti steed was designed as an accessible gravel bike that may develop with you, with fashionable tyre clearance, UDH dropouts, an costly and sturdy end, and a rock stable titanium body building that will not corrode even after a few years of motorbike possession.
For our check, the Titanium All-Highway got here with a full slate of proprietary elements from State —from the drivetrain to the ending package and wheels. By using State’s proprietary elements all through, the Titanium All-Highway balances the upper value of its premium titanium body with a extra accessible worth level, providing a formidable worth.
Whereas a few of these elements would in the end be probably the most difficult side of the bike by a good distance, it does get you rolling on a top quality body for an unbeatable worth.
Over the course of the testing, I didn’t arrive at a definitive conclusion in regards to the bike however moderately one other query: why make an inexpensive bike with a premium materials if lots of the advantages of the fabric are misplaced underneath the burden of poor componentry?
State Titanium All-road body building
(Picture credit score: Logan Jones-Wilkins)
The All-Highway, gravel and off-road classes are broad and unspecified. In my hometown of Phoenix, Arizona, gravel means driving the paved roads to miles upon miles of tamer trails with some dusty Sonoran Desert double tracks thrown in. Luckily for this check, my residence is identical as State bicycles, which has its headquarters a mere ten-minute drive from my home, thus I’d think about my driving aligns very effectively with this bike’s meant function.
In testing this bike, I did my finest to cowl as a lot of that combined floor floor as I might muster and be true to the all-around nature of how the bike was conceived. I additionally made an effort to be true to the worth level and used the bike as an everyday commuting choice to see how it will deal with the extra utilitarian metropolis miles.
(Picture credit score: Logan Jones-Wilkins)
Regardless of the model’s deliberately disruptive premise of ‘what if we did titanium cheaper than anybody else,’ the Titanium All-Highway is conventional in its body design. It sits firmly within the class of conventional adventure-oriented gravel frames with a tall head tube, slack path determine and lengthy wheelbase.
I’m a racer at coronary heart, so the upright geometry was a sticking level for me, particularly on street sections linking the off-road sectors collectively. At 6 foot 1, I usually want a 56cm body. In response to State’s sizing, I used to be a dimension giant, additionally referred to as a 55cm. Regardless that the bike was theoretically smaller than most of what I’ve ridden, it felt very giant and moderately cumbersome.
The State felt tall, slack and lengthy in ways in which all hindered velocity. Nevertheless, on tough terrain, this geometry translated right into a clean and steady trip. For individuals who is likely to be thinking about driving the bike aggressively, I’d extremely suggest sizing down, particularly when you’re planning on operating a suspension fork, which might enhance the already lofty stack top.
Crucially, the Titanium All-Highway pivots from its different All-Highway siblings by adopting a UDH dropout and rising the tyre clearance. Going up from its earlier fashions, the Titanium All-Highway has a acknowledged tyre clearance of 50mm and comes inventory with 47mm Vittoria Terreno Dry tyres. This transfer aligns with the off-road sector at giant because the business strikes towards more and more bigger quantity tyres.
Specs
(Picture credit score: Logan Jones-Wilkins)
- Body: State Bicycles Co. Titanium All-Highway
- Fork: State Normal Black Label Fork
- Groupset: State All-road 1 Groupset
- Energy Meter: NA
- Wheels: State All-road
- Tyres: Vittoria Terreno Dry 47mm
- Bar: State All-road
- Stem: State All-road, 100mm
- Seatpost: State All-road
- Saddle: State Black Label Collection
- Weight: 23.4 kilos with Shimano XTR Pedals
- Dimension examined: Giant
- RRP: $2,499.99
The State Titanium All-road trip high quality
(Picture credit score: Logan Jones-Wilkins)
Away from the professionals and cons of the body geometry, the elephant within the room of this overview is how the bike is constructed to satisfy that $2,499.99 worth level: the elements.
Whereas the worth case is definitely made, for me, the State-branded componentry distracts from the trivialities of the body and the advantages of titanium building. Why undergo the difficulty of constructing a titanium bike with smaller margins if the titanium advantages are negated by the very elements that make it inexpensive?
The issues began with the brakes, that are cable-actuated hydraulics moderately than totally hydraulic. When the journey will get tough, whether or not on jeep trails or singletrack, the stopping energy is unreliable at finest. I usually discovered myself slowing down early and cautiously, making the bike a lot much less succesful than it will be underneath every other hydraulic braking system.
Whereas much less of a security concern, the drivetrain was equally distracting. Whereas the body is UDH succesful, State doesn’t presently supply a SRAM constructed. As an alternative, the State-branded groupset is a mechanical double tap-adjacent, 1x 11-speed mechanism with an everyday derailleur hanger. The inventory gearing comes with a 42t entrance chainring with a 11-42t rear cassette. The shifters are clunky, however they get the job achieved when not underneath load. The derailleur is dependable, and the gear vary is satisfactory, however it’s restricted when in comparison with the newer SRAM and Shimano choices.
Weight apart, I took no actual challenge with the State-branded end package, which consists of 44cm flared “all-road” handlebars, a 25mm setback seatpost, a 170mm crank arms and aluminium “all-road” wheels. The ending package is straightforward to swap to at least one’s choice and I did swap to narrower bars and a higher-end saddle.
Given the transfer to extra tyre clearance, I discover the edges of the State All-Highway wheelset to be moderately slender. I measured the inner rim width at simply 19mm – a far cry from fashionable gravel wheels that function 25mm inside or larger.
The issue with rims this slender is that vast tyres won’t have the identical really feel and luxury over tough surfaces, and so they’ll be uncovered to extra pinch flats.
(Picture credit score: Logan Jones-Wilkins)
Given the lower-tier elements on the entire construct, the frameset possibility often is the extra enticing selection. The body itself is sturdy but maintains an affordable weight, particularly when in comparison with different metal and aluminium alternate options at that worth level. It’s additionally designed with versatility in thoughts, that includes all the mandatory attachment factors for fenders, luggage, racks and different equipment.
At simply $1,299, the frameset gives a stable basis for making a rugged and succesful journey bike at a superb worth. To maintain the construct each inexpensive and well-suited to the body’s meant use, I’d pair it with a mechanical GRX groupset or a SRAM Eagle mullet setup on the Rival/GX degree. For these thinking about going wi-fi with out breaking the financial institution, State gives a SRAM Apex AXS Mullet groupset improve for a further $999 when purchased straight from the model’s web site.
Verdict & Worth
(Picture credit score: Logan Jones-Wilkins)
The State Bicycle Co. Titanium All-Highway has the potential to be a standout, budget-friendly titanium bike, however the proprietary elements come up quick, leaving the entire construct feeling underwhelming.
The $2,499.99 price ticket is tough to beat, sure, however extracting the bike’s full potential would require further funding.
In the end, this bike appears finest suited to these simply starting their gravel journey or riders searching for an inexpensive titanium frameset to customize. Both approach, some tinkering and element upgrades can be mandatory. Because it stands, a lot of the bike’s efficiency functionality stays untapped, making the bike a place to begin moderately than a closing vacation spot.